Converting i-Tunes and WMA files to MP3 format

Hi,

In i-tunes, when I select a few songs and then push the "burn CD" function, it will put them back into CD format.

So, can I then rip them back into MP3s from the new CD or will they be somehow tagged not to be ripped back into MP3s?

I know this sounds complicated, but a couple of members in my band (by the way, the audition was successful, I am in a classic rock band playing the Sennheiser 835 aren't I just groovy, yeah, ok, whatever...) need a couple songs and have no real computer nor itunes availibility.

I would go buy the song on CD, but I can't find it (examples: Carry On, Wayward Son by Kansas, You're All I've Got Tonight - The Cars).

So, can I transform an i-tune into an MP3?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Are you too honest to download songs the Limewire way? Then you can do what you want with the file, there's no restrictions like there are with the rip-off i-Tunes.

If you feel an urgent need to pay for music, try AllofMP3.

Sorry, can't help you with your actual question, except that I remember reading somewhere that it can be done.

BBC News: Online music lovers 'frustrated'

Limewire.. Blahhhhh

Shareaza is the only way to go... 6 Networks 1 client..

But if you can get iTunes to make a normal Audio CD, then it should be possible to rip those tracks back into normal unprotected MP3's. Just use one of These programs, and be done with it...

There's info in the comments at the foot of this article:

BBC News: Entertainment agenda: Digital frustrations

Sorry guys, I prefer paying for music.

You should drop a brick on your dick for stealing music. We all did it during the nutella period, but that was supposed to be like shoplifting, a thrill for a time, but hopefully we grew up and got a conscience.

Anyway, so you don't know anymore than I do about whether this is possible.

Um, thanks.

If you already have the Orig. CD then how is it stealing?
What if the CD is copy protected, and you want MP3's for your MP3 Player?? It's called Fair Use, get used to it...

GEMA in Germany and the the RIAA type. org in France also agree. Downloading music from P2P
is actually LEGAL in France and a few other countries..

Yes it is possible to convert from mp4a to mp3.. there's an option in iTunes itself.

you can always just right click on the song them select the "convert to mp3" option I would think that would do it

6? my version only connects to four networks, edonkey, gnutella, gnutella2 and bittorrent.

which are the other 2?

Isn't buring a CD for your friends also stealing? You're just an accesory.

Ctrl + R brings you to the iTunes file within your computer, but that'll be an MP4, although a lot of MP3 players will still read it. Not sure how to convert that to an MP3, but if right click works, there you go.

not according to German law it isn't, as long as you aren't charging.

well, not according to me either, but still, in theory, it's stealing..

it's not even stealing in theory here.

Yes, but it's not alawys there; usually Convert to mp4a/aac or something is there, so you have to change to mp3 in the default settings somewhere. This then changes the right-click option to convert to mp3.

I guess that is a good point, but I know the song well enough to sing it in a coma, and I just bought it today to have a copy for the guys to learn.

Well I changed the preferences back to "Convert selection to MP3,

and it says "Carry On Wayward Son" could not be converted because protected files cannot be converted to other formats.

So, if I actually burn a CD, will I be able to rip it to MP3 format?

Has anyone ever done this?

Sure it is.. it's not like borrowing a sweater from a friend so that you don't have to buy it, rather you can keep the music for yourself, upload it into your computer, Mp3 player, etc. etc.

If you bought Carry on Wayward Son (very good choice by the way, saw Kansas last summer at Tollwood) from iTunes, they put a lock on it so you can't put it into other iTunes from friends (without your iStore password or something). If you burn it as an audio cd, though, you can do whatever you want with the song, only all the title/album/artist information will be lost, but you just have to name it yourself.

making copies (free of charge) for your friends and family is explicitly ALLOWED by German law, therefore it is not even stealing in theory, let alone practice.

I'm not talking about German law, and this statement does not explain to me why it isn't "in theory" stealing.

Anyways, it doesn't matter. I think it's stealing and you don't. I still burn cds, so I'm not condemning it anyways, so forget it

I got the complete answer from a Kansas fan.

A taste of Nirvana.

Not just Kansas, Styx followed. Large powerful fans blew their hair back the whole time, the keyboardist's keyboard spun around on some contraption, lots of leather - the whole lot. Poor Kansas didn't know about the fans.. they're all over 60 and were sweating like nothing you've ever seen before

I do also legally download MP3s, but there are two major obstacles:

1. As you are currently experiencing, despite having legally purchased the material, you are seriously hindered in what you can do with it.

2. A lot of the songs I want aren't even available for legal download. A decade after the technology was invented, there's still a huge sector in the music industry yet to embrace digital downloading. So either wait 6 weeks for a vinyl to come through the post or spend ten minutes on Limewire. Hmm.

Lorilei let's live together.

Great music, they should have also included Boston in the line-up.

I am not 60, but I am not 20 either. I think the oldest Kansas fans must be 45, if my rock meter is correct.

Having said that, I went to a high school reunion and many people had aged incredibly, everyone was frickin swollen and stretched (and you had to really look at their high school photo on their tag to know who the hell it was). Why did the ultimate players ever stop? I didn't.

Anyway, I digress.

Thanks again for the MP3 advice.

OK, I've tried it: used iTunes to burn a CD of m4a tracks, then used Windows Media Player to copy back and got mp3 tracks. WMP could not identify the artist or tracks, but iTunes could!

Then Manually Update the ID3 Tags.. Duh

Thanks - did that with TigoTago. Nice.

You are correct. Shareaza uses 4 networks natively (G1,G2,ED2K,BitTorrent). Other networks such as KAD,Overnet, and others
are being worked on, and can be found as Plug-ins, until incorporated into the main code (If Approved).

PS: All Shareaza Users, make sure you have Security Update 5.5 Installed

Jeremy, you rule.

Thanks!

Aternatively, go to http://www.mp3search.ru/ to legally download. 10c per song

Look at the extention. .ru is Russian. How can anything coming from Russia be legal?

@Bilko: And you simply send them your Visa card numbers?

It is legal to download from that site if you are resident in Russia. Otherwise, you are covered by the copyright laws in the country you reside in. In other words, to download from that site while in Germany is no less illegal than downloading from P2P.

There's no problem with giving them your credit card number; transactions are undertaken by a secure third pary like Worldpay.

See BBC News article about AllofMP3.com, which operates on the same basis and which I linked to earlier in the thread:

'Legal okay' for Russian MP3 site

I just bought a new Sat Nav (Mio 269+) which has an MP3 player. However all the music on my notebook is either in WMA or ipod format. The WMA files play fine on a normal MP3 player but the Sat Nav will only take proper MP3 format, is there a way to convert?

Topics merged by admin

This came up just this week, here's the link regarding those repressive i-Tunes downloads:

Ripping i-tunes back to MP3s, Is this possible?

And for WMA to MP3, take your pick from here:

Download.com: MP3 Converters, free

cheers STB, I´ll give it a go...

I have an ipod and always used the itunes. But I read this topic and tried allofmp3. My question is about the online encoding: there are several formats (mp3, wma, ogg) and I have no idea which one should I choose...Any recommendations?
Thanks

Never even noticed the different options. MP3 is probably the most flexible format, but I'm Apple-free so I don't know which would be best for your ipod.

ipod supports only mp3 and aac formats. ogg and wma are out.

OK, does anyone know how to remove the protection from iTunes songs. I am not talking about the m4a songs, but the m4p songs. Found a scheme, but it only works with iTunes 5, and I have iTunes 6.5 installed, and really want to remove the protection so I can play these somes without iTunes.

1. Create a playlist.
2. Burn CD.
3. There is no step 3.

Import the music back into iTunes if you want.

Full instructions here if you need them.